Juergen Stark's sudden departure from his post at the European Central Bank (ECB) over the issue of buying bonds from troubled euro zone countries has led to wider problems, both in the zone and at home in Germany.

The announcement by Axel Weber in February that he was withdrawing his name from consideration as the next head of the European Central Bank opened the field to other candidates, but as time has passed Mario Draghi, head of Italy’s central bank, has emerged as the strongest of those.

While Spain’s Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero talked up his country’s progress in getting its debt under control, he also expressed faith that the euro zone would agree to take steps to strengthen the European Financial Stability Facility, the euro zone’s rescue fund.

Angela Merkel, chancellor of Germany, was due to meet on Friday with Axel Weber, head of the Bundesbank, and Wolfgang Schaueble, Germany’s finance minister, to discuss Weber’s withdrawal from the race for the top slot at the European Central Bank.